TPK reaps harvest from Apple

WINDOWS OF OPPORTUNITY:The touch-screen maker said profit gains represent an ‘historical high,’ which it attributed in part to the launch of Windows 8 operating system

By Lisa Wang / Staff reporter

Revenue from touch screens used in notebooks and tablets rose to 54 percent of last quarter’s revenue, from 41 percent in the second quarter and 36 percent in the third quarter of last year, the company’s financial statement showed. Revenue from Apple accounted for 55 percent of the company’s total revenue, down from 76 percent in the second quarter, the company said.

Operating margins would rise 0.5 percentage points to about 11.6 percent this quarter, from last quarter’s 11.1 percent and 10.6 percent in the second quarter, Liu said.

Separately, Wintek Corp (勝華) — which also supplies touch panels to Apple — reported a 12.84 percent decline in revenue for last month to NT$1.25 billion, compared with NT$9.72 billion in September, according to a company statement released on Monday. On an annual basis, that represented 51.25 percent growth from NT$5.6 billion.

Wintek expected revenue to drop 15 percent this quarter from last quarter as sales of Apple’s previous-generation iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S fell, coupled with a reduction in demand for Google Inc’s tablet Nexus 7, Credit Suisse analyst Jeffrey Su (蘇厚合) said in a report.